An Angel's Fate
by Cherry-stone96
Summary: Everyone in the Cullen household is on edge; especially Edward and Alice. Bella is confused until Jasper tells her that Alice has had a vision... How far will Jasper and Bella go to avoid their fate? Rated M because I'm paranoid
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT, ALL CREDIT GOES TO STEPHANIE MEYER. I'M JUST PLAYING IN THE VIRTUAL SANDBOX**

**(A/n I haven't written any Twilight fiction in a LONG time and then *poof* last night this popped into my head. As for the timeline I have no idea where this fits, obviously it's before Bella is changed but she has some idea of the Volturi... what the hell, if we're taking this much of a departure from the story stop worrying and just enjoy. Anyone for another chapter? *puppy dog eyes* )**

* * *

_**Toni Braxton:  
**__**How could an angel break my heart? Why didn't he catch my falling star? I wish I didn't wish so hard. Maybe I wished our love apart.**_

* * *

I sat on the floor opposite the sofa watching Jasper sitting with his arms around Alice, folding her into his cold stone body like a mother to a child. Perhaps it was an odd comparison to make between two mates but Alice had always struck me as childlike. Or maybe Jasper was just unbelievably… stern.

Edward was out hunting, which was strange of itself. Usually he ordered his time so he could stay in the house with me while I was there.

I turned my cheek to the wall, feeling its coolness on my frail human skin. I guessed Jasper probably wasn't breathing right now, and he'd do his usual trick of disappearing in around five minutes. He was predictable in this way at least.

Jasper was something of an obsession with me, a thorny problem I wanted to solve, he was like a jigsaw puzzle with a piece missing and I couldn't complete the picture. In a way, he was both the best and the worst of the Cullens. If someone had asked me to think of a vampire before I knew the Cullens Jasper would have fit the bill perfectly- cold, calm, unfeeling. Beautifully deadly. What made him especially fascinating was that I felt his humanity was only a very thin veneer that he painted over himself in order to fit in with the rest of the family, with Alice.

He only marginally succeeded. Of all the Cullens it was Jasper I was most, and least, afraid of. Yes, he could kill me without a second thought but at least he _had_ flaws. It was a bit horrific to constantly be the only person around who could slip up, who could make mistakes. Jasper made me feel a little less alone.

"Bella?" Jasper's cool voice seemed to echo inside my head as I turned with a reassuring smile ready on my lips. No doubt, he had tasted the emotional atmosphere around me.

"I'm fine." My smile felt alien. "Sorry." I added unnecessarily – he could tell I wasn't feeling apologetic.

It was Alice's hot amber eyes that drew me in, sparking with some unknown emotion. Jasper looked like he was seconds away from escaping the room.

"I'm sorry, I need to…" I fled the room with my sentence unfinished, stumbling up the stairs. I tripped a couple of times and ended up running up using both my hands and legs. I stopped halfway, compromising with myself. I wouldn't escape to Edward's room because that was childish, but neither could I sit in that room one second longer. The atmosphere was palpable.

I knew that Jasper and Alice must have heard me stop, probably heard my accelerated heartbeat right now. There were no secrets in the Cullen house. It was almost suffocating.

Not a week ago, Edward had been my air, my very reason for breathing. But he'd been distant from me lately, spending a lot of time with Alice. I'd stopped being upset about that when I'd found them both sitting at the chess table in stony silence, each with chess pieces crumbled to dust in their stone fists. I'd tried to ask what was wrong but Edward had just smiled painfully at me and shook his head.

Every moment Alice wasn't with Edward she was with Jasper. Their relationship had changed, it was like they were gobbling up every precious moment together like something bad was going to happen, something was going to tear them apart.

It scared me. If two superhuman beings were still subject to fate, then what hope did I have?

Carlisle was noticeably absent from the house, spending his hours at the hospital. Esme was around but I wasn't getting the same motherly feeling from her. It was strange; it was like they were all watching me, waiting for me to do something.

I just wished I knew what that something was. It set my heart on edge within my chest.

At least Emmett remained much the same. Rosalie seemed to hate me even more these days. I hadn't even thought that was possible.

I dropped my head onto my knees and finally let the feelings overtake me. Everything I had been hiding for the past week overwhelmed me and I tucked my arms around my middle and dry sobbed – the feelings too much to get out through tears.

"Bella?" Jasper's voice.

I just sniffed. Jasper was not the person I wanted right now. I wanted Edward to be there, with his cool soothing touch. He'd wrap me in his arms and tell me everything was okay.

"I… Bella, your emotions…" I chanced a look up into his face and felt a jab of guilt. His features were twisted with his attempt at control. I wanted to reach out a hand and smooth out all the lines in the perfect marble.

"I'm sorry Jasper." My voice was small but sure. "This is how I feel right now. Everyone's on edge, it scares me." I looked up at him again.

"What is it Jasper? What are Edward and Alice hiding from me? I think you know…"

He stood up quickly and moved to lean against the wall, snarling. I jumped a little in shock – it was unusual for Jasper to show emotion.

"It's better if you don't know Bella. It's better for everyone if you don't know. Alice's visions are subject to change after all. There's still time for this to change…"

He looked overwhelmingly sad. Sad and afraid. Sadness and fear were two emotions I never expected to cross his perfect features.

I felt myself starting to panic.

"It's something bad isn't it? The Volturi? I thought we had more time! If Edward wasn't so stubborn…" I trailed off.

"That's beside the point anyway," I hurried on, "It shouldn't make everyone worry like this. It's a bit sudden and I do wish we had more time, but I'm all for changing me as soon as possible. You know that Jasper. I wouldn't put the family in danger."

I hadn't thought it was possible for his face to show any more tension, but as always, these superhuman beings surprised me.

"Well more fool us Bella!" The anger in his voice scared me. "More fool us…"

I surged up from my sitting position to grab onto his stony arm, forgetting the danger I was putting myself in.

"What is it Jasper? Just tell me, please, I can't fix it if I don't know what's wrong!"

His cool amber eyes regarded me for a few seconds, like a cat in their aloofness. I refused to be scared off, simply tightening my grip.

"Tell me." My voice was firm, brooking no argument. His mouth tilted a little in a smile, but it looked painful and sharp on his face.

"Alice saw us Bella."

I frowned at him. There wasn't anything unusual in that surely? I tried to think of the worst possibility.

"Was it something like my birthday? That's silly Jasper; I mean I trust you…"

He spun away before I could finish my sentence, wrenching my hand from its grip easily. I let it fall to my side, tears beginning to build in my eyes.

"Can't you tell me, Jasper, please?" My hand began to reach out again of its own accord but I snatched it back when he snarled furiously at me.

"Bella, sweet innocent little Bella. You know what they all think? They think I corrupt you in some way. Edward's current theory is that I influence your emotions somehow. Alice is exhausting herself searching for futures where it doesn't happen. There aren't any. This is something even we can't escape."

"Jasper you're speaking in riddles! Whatever it is, surely it can't be that bad? We can get through it together."

"Well that's rather the point." He laughed but there wasn't any humour in it. "We're going to rip this family apart; we're going to betray everything we hold dear…"

He finally looked at me then but I couldn't decipher the whirling emotions in his amber eyes.

"Bella, we're going to fall in love."


	2. Chapter 2

**(A/n I couldn't wait until I got more reviews to upload this haha (*^_^*) Just to clarify in this story Bella was never abandoned by Edward the first time around in New Moon. Hope you enjoy, and also hope I didn't make Edward too OOC??)**

* * *

_**Oscar Wilde:  
A kiss may ruin a human life.**_

* * *

_Previously: _

_"Jasper you're speaking in riddles! Whatever it is, surely it can't be that bad? We can get through it together."_

_"Well that's rather the point." He laughed but there wasn't any humour in it. "We're going to rip this family apart; we're going to betray everything we hold dear…"_

_He finally looked at me then but I couldn't decipher the whirling emotions in his amber eyes._

_"Bella, we're going to fall in love." _

* * *

I scrambled back from him, horrified.

"Jasper no, that's silly. I mean… us? We can't, we _won't_, that's just…"

"Wrong?" He completed my sentence for me. "I know Bella, but according to Alice sometime within the next month your opinion of me changes very dramatically."

My mind whirled and not for the first time I wished it worked at vampire speed.

"But like you said, Alice's visions are subject to change. I mean she could have misinterpreted…"

He smiled at me, though it was more a baring of his teeth.

"Not many ways to misinterpret a kiss Bella."

I felt like someone had taken my world, turned it upside down and shaken it. My head felt a little fuzzy.

"A kiss? But we wouldn't… I mean, we'd never!"

"Not at this point in time no. When you live as long as we do Bella, you begin to accept certain things. Fate is one of them. Alice and I are making our peace with this."

I felt hot and angry, like my blood had turned to molten lava. How could he just _accept _this?

"What is wrong with you Jasper? You _love_ Alice, I know you do! Edward is my world. How could that change? Nothing could change that!"

My eyes were filling with hot angry tears and I wiped them away, annoyed at my weakness. Jasper was growing angry too, baring his perfectly sharp teeth at me.

"I don't know Bella, I don't have the answers! And of course, I love Alice with everything that I have. This is why I trust her when she says that what she saw will come to pass…"

I bang my fist on the step, refusing to believe any of it. From the pain, I knew it would bruise later.

"No, you're wrong. We won't… I couldn't! How could we do that to them? Jasper you don't even _like_ me! I won't bow to this!"

"We don't have a choice Bella! You can't argue with fate, you can't argue with the future, it's pointless. It's like arguing with yourself."

I lifted my head to stare him dead in the face.

"This will not happen. There is no future in which it could ever happen. It's unthinkable, Jasper, it's…"

I burst into real tears then, feeling lost and alone. Edward must hate me. That's why he'd been avoiding me all week. Everyone had been watching me for signs that I was falling for Jasper. It was unfair! Did no one have any faith?

"I'll die before I do it… Alice do you hear me? I'll die!" I was screaming in defiance by the end of the sentence. She was by my side in seconds, folding me into her cold stone arms.

"Jazz, darling you're not helping." Her voice was steady and calm. It just made me cry even more.

"This situation is not something I've had experience with Alice." His voice was bitter with tears he couldn't shed.

"Alice, Alice, I won't… I swear I won't…" I tried to get my promise out between my sobs, clinging to her as the only steady thing in the sea of my emotions.

"Bella," her voice was cool and soothing, "Silly Bella. People change, feelings change. It's not your fault. I've already forgiven you."

"You don't need to! How can you forgive me for something I won't do?!"

I looked up at her and her eyes were sad.

"I've railed against my visions before Bella. There's no point. What I've seen will come to pass."

"Edward…" I sobbed uncontrollably. "I need, I _want_ Edward."

She gathered me closer, placed a cold kiss to my head.

"It's not easy for him at the moment Bella. Think of it this way- he will always have a part of you, just as I will always have a part of Jasper. He was there for a reason, to bring you into the family, to give you a chance to meet us."

I shook my head so hard my neck clicked.

"No, I love Edward. I _belong_ with Edward forever. What changed Alice, something must have changed…" I was talking so fast I was tripping over my words. "You've never seen this before, what did we do? What did _I_ do? I can change it back, I can make it okay…" The rest of my sentence was lost as sobs wracked my entire body.

"No Bella, no." Her voice rang with finality. "This future is set."

Jasper slid down the wall next to me, staring blankly at the opposite wall, his eyes shining with venom tears.

I cried for what felt like hours and Alice held me. I didn't understand how she could stand to be anywhere near me but I clung selfishly to her, greedily taking what little comfort I could. Jasper sat alone, staring at the same patch of wall, visibly torturing himself with the waves of misery washing over me

Eventually my tears subsided and I felt dry and hollow.

"Alice…" I coughed, my throat felt dry and unused. "I'm so sorry. I'll find a way to change this."

She sighed and I felt the cool mint of her breath ruffle across my head.

"If it makes you feel better to pointlessly struggle Bella, do what you must." Jasper's voice rang out next to me.

I felt my heart clang within my chest. The man, I corrected myself, vampire I was meant to be in love with by the end of the month. I couldn't fathom it. He seemed so cold, so unfeeling. I only believed in his love for Alice. I may have had a little crush on him, but that was understandable. Every member of the Cullens was unearthly in their beauty – it was natural to be dazzled. But my heart belonged with Edward; I belonged with Edward always.

I felt an unreasonable hatred rise in my chest. Jasper wasn't even struggling, wasn't even _trying _to fight this.

I saw a wince cross his face as the full force of my emotions hit him and I instantly regretted my pettiness, wishing I could reach a hand out across the space between us to cover the cold skin of his hand with my own.

But I didn't want to touch him ever again. Every desire, every emotion I had around him would be constantly analysed, reined in, picked over in my mind. It was suffocating me already.

I felt a scream building in my chest. I panicked, trying to rein it in but it was bubbling up through my throat.

It ripped out of me filled with stillborn emotion, echoing through the walls, increasing in volume and intensity until I collapsed into Alice's arms.

"Take me home." My voice was dull. "Alice please, I can't… just take me home."

Charlie was there immediately when we pulled up to my house but I waved away his questions and left him standing with Alice, bemused.

I walked into the house in almost a daze, trembling up the stairs, falling a few times and skinning my hands on the wooden edges.

How could Alice's vision ever come true? But she seemed so sure I felt my own belief was misplaced. The only plan I had right now was to never see Jasper again.

If only Edward was here, I would be okay. I could cling to him and he would tell me it was alright, he'd never leave me.

I opened my door with a heavy heart and the small light of hope went out in my chest. Edward wasn't in my room waiting for me.

I slipped into my bed and pulled a pillow underneath my head, curling up in a ball around the solid block of pain in my stomach. I tried only to think of Edward, how much I loved him, everything we'd been through to get this far.

I fell into an exhausted tortured sleep with him on my mind and in my heart.

When I woke up it took a moment to hit me. At first, I was just surprised Edward wasn't there in the rocking chair as usual. Then I remembered everything that had been revealed, the cause of all the pain in my family that I had been blissfully oblivious to. I wished I still was.

I felt like I was going to tear apart every time I so much as breathed.

I jerked in surprise at a knock on my door, then relaxed again as I realised it must be Charlie.

"Bella?" The familiar gruff voice brought a lump to my throat but I kept my back to the door, unsure what emotion was showing on my face.

I felt the bed dip as he sat on my side and patted me awkwardly.

"Alice said you had a fight with Edward. Are you okay honey?"

It would have been funny if it wasn't so stupid. I was the furthest from okay I'd ever been.

"I don't know if we can fix this." My voice started shaking towards the end of my sentence and he put his hand on my shoulder, squeezing gently.

"You'll be okay Bells..."

I managed to free one arm from my blanket to bring my hand up to awkwardly squeeze his.

"I know Ch… Dad. Please, I just need some time."

"Well, you know I'm here Bella. Anything you need."

He sat there for a few seconds of silence, and then squeezed my shoulder again before walking out and shutting the door.

I left my hand on top of the blankets and wrapped my other tighter around myself. I felt like I was breaking in two. How could I betray the people I loved the most? I could see no way in which I would love Jasper like that.

My heart skipped a beat and my head whipped up as I heard a gentle knock on my window. It was Edward. I felt my heart blossom in hope as I rushed over to the window.

"Edward where have you been?! I've missed you, it was horrible, Jasper told me…"

My words ran out as I absorbed the look on his face. Or rather, the absence of any look at all. He wasn't angry, or afraid, or glad to see me. It was the most vampiric I'd ever seen Edward. I shivered.

"Bella, let me pass." His voice was the same as ever but it sounded dead and lost.

I stood aside automatically, while looking at him in total horror.

"Edward…" I reached out to touch him on the arm and he flinched away from me; pain etched into his face as he silently jumped down from the windowsill.

"So Jasper told you what Alice saw." There was no inflection in his voice to indicate a question but I took it as so.

"Yes, but Edward, it will be okay," I was stumbling over my words in eagerness, trying to break him out of this new stillness, "I love _you_, nothing will change that. Me and Jasper, we could never be…"

I broke off as he held up a hand, running the other through his hair.

"Alice has told me this will not change. There is no alternative. I've been arguing with her about it for a week straight now. She's unwavering."

"No Edward…" I began again but he cut me off with a soft look and a touch to my cheek.

"Bella, I love you, but I can't stand by and watch you fall in love with my brother. I don't have the capacity for that much forgiveness. I can't let that happen."

I felt a little relieved.

"Me either Edward, I told Alice…"

"I'm leaving Bella."

"Edward, no!" I gasped, horrified. I grabbed his arm and shook it slightly.

"I can't stay here and watch you fall out of love with me. It'd kill me. Alice has told me there might be something in my future…"

"I love you; you know that, this doesn't change a thing!"

He shook his head violently, and shook my hand away from him.

"It changes everything Bella. I'm already tortured just by the thought of it. How could I stay here and watch it happen?"

The stillness was back over his face and that terrified me. It was like he'd already said goodbye to me. To us.

"Edward it won't happen, it never could! I'm not that fickle, my heart could never belong to anyone but you…"

He snarled and moved towards the window.

"This future is not changeable Bella. Neither your words or your actions can bend it to the shape we want it to be."

His eyes softened with unshed venom tears and I saw my chance, rushing to him.

My hands snatched at nothing. He was already gone.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Voltaire:  
Tears are the silent language of grief **_

* * *

_Previously:_

_"Edward it won't happen, it never could! I'm not that fickle, my heart could never belong to anyone but you…"_

_He snarled and moved towards the window._

_"This future is not changeable Bella. Neither your words or your actions can bend it to the shape we want it to be."_

_His eyes softened with unshed venom tears and I saw my chance, rushing to him._

_My hands snatched at nothing. He was already gone._

* * *

I stood at the window for a long time straining my eyes against the darkness, thinking he was going to come back and apologise. Eventually the expanse of lawn towards the woods was flooded with moonlight and Edward had still not returned.

I felt hot in the pit of my stomach where the lump of pain resided, bigger now then it had ever been.

"Edward has left me…" To hear it out loud in my own voice was terrifying, a monstrous nightmare.

I flew to my bed and sheltered under the covers, the velvet darkness covering what I knew to be true.

"He wouldn't, he _wouldn't_, not now… God please, not now…"

I started to shake violently as my body attempted to cry. But my mind was numb, holding the emotions back so I could only observe them second-hand. Like a polite spectator. It was horrific – I would have preferred to break down. I felt a little mentally unhinged this way.

I couldn't even close my eyes; my last glimpse of Edward was burned into the skin on the back of my eyelids. He was there every time I tried to shut my eyes; everywhere I turned there were memories of him.

It was selfish of him to leave, selfish and cruel. I was dealing with this too; I _needed_ him now more than ever to reassure me that we would survive this. If Edward had no faith then what was mine worth?

I lay in my bed, broken and hurting. It felt like the bottom had dropped out of my world. I had steered my way by Edward and now he was gone I felt adrift.

I was alone and I was scared, but the longer I lay there the more angry I grew. How dare he have no faith in me? If it had been the other way around would I have run?

I wavered between righteous anger and gut wrenching sorrow until Charlie quietly entered the room to interrupt with a whisper.

"Alice wants to speak to you Bella."

I felt a stab of pain just at her name. Poor Alice that I had hurt, and had in turn hurt me so much.

"Just for a little while Dad, I don't feel so good."

I put out a hand and felt the cool solid weight of the house phone pressed into it. My door clicked shut and I brought the phone to my ear.

"Alice…" My voice sounded dead. "Do you know? Ed…. He's gone. He's left me. He…"

I was interrupted by her bell like voice. It was comfortingly familiar, the sweetness reminding me of better days and better times before this.

"I know Bella. To tell you the truth, it may have been his decision that caused all this. His refusal to stay might just be our undoing." Her voice sounded sad, but there was a note of acceptance there that I could not understand.

"What?" My brain felt stupid and slow as I grasped for her meaning.

"Jasper will be the one to help you through this. There's…"

"No." My voice was firm and final. "I don't want him anywhere near me Alice, please, Edward might come back, Edward might…"

"Bella darling. You know how this is going to turn out. Can't you see…?"

I sat up, eyes burning with tears I didn't have the energy to shed.

"I don't want to see! Alice I don't want Jasper anywhere near me, it's just stupid, like being warned about a fire and walking straight into the burning building."

"And you don't think he needs _you_ right now? Bella he's losing everything he's ever known, everything that he thought was true. And…"

I had never ever heard Alice hesitate and it made my muscles tighten in fear.

"I'm leaving."

It was like being hit by a wrecking ball – that's the only thing I could compare it to. I couldn't handle it. First Edward, now Alice, they were all dropping away from me… Because of something I hadn't done yet, something we didn't even know would happen.

"Why?" The word was all I could manage to squeeze through in my panic and despair. Alice wasn't Edward; Alice was stronger in many ways…

"There's somewhere I have to be Bella, I've seen it. Someone I have to save."

"But Alice," I started to sob, "What about saving me?"

"Oh Bella," I could hear the love in her voice, but her pain was also palpable.

"I can't save you. And the time it would take me to try would mean someone else's death. Bella I can't have that on my conscience and, I hope, neither could you…"

I was angry with her for appealing to my better side and that shamed me.

"Do you hate me? Alice, is that why you're leaving?"

"I don't hate you Bella, I love you. You're going to save Jazz, in a way I never could. I'd love you just for that." She sighed.

Her words felt empty to me. How could I save Jasper when I couldn't even save myself?

"Bell…" Her voice faded away to nothing as I pressed the end call button and let the phone slide from my limp fingers to the floor.

There was nothing more in this world that I wanted right now than oblivion but the thought of Charlie pulled me up short. I had to suffer through this. I had to feel this.

I was angry at all of them – Edward for not believing in me, Alice for abandoning me, and Jasper… Jasper for starting all of this. If he had just fought a little, believed inside himself that we could change what Alice saw…

I kept stoking the fires of my anger, hoping to burn away the pain from my chest, but all it did was exhaust me.

I sat cross-legged and dropped my head into my hands, crying until my head felt stuffy and heavy. I had no more tears to give.

I picked up the phone and padded across the floor to my door.

"Dad…" My voice was too hoarse and I swallowed. "Dad."

I saw his familiar figure appear on the landing and held the phone out wordlessly. His big hand closed around it, dwarfing mine that lay alongside.

"Bells?"

I looked up into his face – his eyes were swimming in concern for me.

"Edward is gone." My pain bled out into my voice. "Alice says… Alice says she has to go too." I didn't know what reason Carlisle was going to give for their sudden disappearance and I didn't have the energy to care.

Charlie looked as confused as I felt. If I had felt remotely normal, it would have made me laugh.

"Where are they going?"

"That's the million dollar question Dad." I said sadly and finally let go of the phone. "If she rings again I don't want to talk to her."

"Is that a good idea Bells?"

I shrugged, my chest felt painful and tight.

"It's the best I've got at the moment." I reached for his other hand and squeezed it a little. He half-smiled at me and squeezed back.

"You'll be okay Bella. Believe me, it hurts right now but it'll get better. When your mom left…"

I saw his face tighten in remembered pain and something hot splintered in my chest.

"Yeah Dad, I know. Just right now doesn't feel so great."

He patted me awkwardly on the back, doing his best even though he felt uncomfortable with sentiment. I appreciated it – here was one person who hadn't abandoned me yet.

I watched him as he shifted from foot to foot, obviously feeling out of his depth.

"I'm going to…" I pointed back inside my room.

"Yeah, well, you know I'm just down the hall if… You know." He ended with another pat and a kiss on my head before ambling off.

I closed my door on more than the hall, I closed it on being strong and pretending I was fine.

I slid to the floor on the other side and stared out of the window with unseeing eyes. My heart was beating out a tattoo.

_Edward, Edward, Edward._

Shut up, I thought at it, Edward isn't here. Edward's gone.

_Edward, Edward, Edward._

I scrunched a hand in my hair and rose violently, stamping down the hall to the bathroom. I reached into the cabinet, pushing aside packets and bottles until I found what I was looking for.

The sleeping pills Charlie kept for those nights when he'd seen something horrible and he couldn't sleep.

I tapped out two into my palm and then thought better of it, tucking the bottle into my fist and shuffling back to my room.

I had a feeling I'd need these every night from now on.

I chugged them down with the glass of stale water from my bedside table and curled up on my bed.

I just wanted to hide in my sleep, to not have to think about how I'd live through tomorrow, or the next day, or the day after that… without Edward I was returned to where I began – alone and afraid.

It felt like a long time before I got any rest.

Suffice to say when I woke up in the morning I didn't feel very refreshed. I'd dreamt that Edward had left me in the middle of our meadow and as he'd walked away, everything around me had died; the grass and flowers turning a brittle dead brown.

I woke up with a jolt, tears on my face and a damp pillow underneath my head. It felt like my body was weighted down with lead.

I huffed and turned face down into the pillow, my breath coming short and spiked. I had one day to get over this and then I had go to school. It felt like a lifetime wouldn't be enough.

I dragged myself to a sitting position and scrubbed my hands over my face. Time to get up and face the day Bella.

I should have known it was too good to last, the relative calm I'd been experiencing until this point. The hit was ten times worse for the time I'd denied it.

At first, the pain was such that it stunned me into silence and I stood frozen. Then I screamed, long and loud, collapsing to my knees with a slam that I barely felt. I vaguely heard Charlie's footsteps boom up the stairs and down the hall, and then I was in his arms.

"Bella, Bella, what's wrong?" His voice was frantic but I couldn't stop my screaming long enough to reply.

Eventually his body heat and the gentle rocking soothed me enough for me to choke out.

"Dad..."

I creased over again, crumpled like a piece of paper in an angry fist.

"Dad, Dad, it hurts." I was crying again although ten minutes ago I was sure I didn't have a tear left in me.

Charlie was almost crying too by this point; I could feel his chest move as he pulled in ragged breaths.

"What has he done to you? Oh Bella, what has he done?" His tone was angry but his hands were soft on my back, soothing me.

Eventually, when my crying jag was over, he became awkward again - but I clung to him like a child. He was the last constant in my world; Renee was miles away in Jacksonville and would only fuss over me unnecessarily. And Edward and Alice were _gone_.

I released Charlie from my death grip and flexed my arms surreptitiously before wiping my eyes and somewhat snotty nose on my sleeve.

"Ew." I laughed a little and saw the tenderness light up in his eyes.

"It'll get better Bells; you know I'm always here."

"Yeah, thanks Dad." I gave him a quick one-armed hug and he stood slowly.

I made some creaking noises and winked at him.

"Legs not what they used to be?"

He mock-frowned.

"I'll have you know I can still outrun most guys."

I snickered as I stood.

"Yeah Dad, important word there being _most_."

It felt okay, almost homely, to be pottering about the kitchen making breakfast with Charlie at the kitchen table. And if it sometimes felt like I was breaking apart, I would hug an arm across my stomach and wait until the feeling subsided.

I plonked myself down into the chair opposite Charlie, pushing my eggs around my plate.

"I have to go up to the station, they called this morning before… well they called."

I looked up from my plate – feigning interest.

"What's it about?"

"Some hikers noticed a few trees smashed to pieces, up near the Cul… in the woods. Rumours going round about a crazed bear. It's good to put in an appearance, eases people's minds."

I frowned slightly. If it was up near the Cullen place, which was what Charlie had avoided saying, then it was most probably Jasper who had destroyed the trees.

Alice's words came back to me.

_"Bella he's losing everything he's ever known, everything that he thought was true."_

I tried to feel self-righteous as I stood at the sink angrily scrubbing, but instead I just felt worn and more than a little tired. There was someone else out there hurting just as much as me, and in my selfishness I was denying him comfort.

What exactly could I do though? The whole situation was a minefield. There was no way on this earth I was spending any time with Jasper, even though I was sure of myself and my heart, I knew that it was tempting fate.

So I would leave him to suffer alone? No, not that either - I couldn't abandon him when I was the only one who understood how he was hurting.

It wasn't like he _was_ alone though - he had Carlisle and Esme, Emmett and Rose... but I'd often wondered if he considered the family as his own or if he felt they belonged more to Alice. Jasper had always been on the fringes, a steady and silent figure, somehow solitary even in a crowd.

I shook my head. It was none of my concern. I had more than enough on my plate just dealing with my own problems.

I called out a quick goodbye to Charlie as he passed me with a pat to my shoulder. After the door slammed I stood at the bottom of the stairs for a good minute debating with myself.

Finally I ascended the staircase, knowing I had to take a shower and get properly dressed. I slammed into my room and kept my eyes resolutely glued to the floor, knowing the path to my closet this way because I was usually always watching my feet anyway to make sure I didn't trip.

I nearly brained myself on the wall when I heard a quiet noise outside the window.


	4. Chapter 4

(**A/n **Thank you to every single person who took the time to review, even if it was just a few words it really does help. I am going to try to reply to all of you when I can but until then thanks everyone for supporting my story ^_^ )

* * *

_**Kamran Hamid:**_  
_**"Fate is for those too weak to determine their own destiny."**_

* * *

_Previously:_

_Finally I ascended the staircase, knowing I had to take a shower and get properly dressed. I slammed into my room and kept my eyes resolutely glued to the floor, knowing the path to my closet this way because I was usually always watching my feet anyway to make sure I didn't trip._

_I nearly brained myself on the wall when I heard a quiet noise outside the window._

* * *

It's just the wind moving the tree outside Bella, don't be silly. I admonished myself, starting to pull clothes out at random.

It came again. I snapped my head towards the window, heart leaping like a salmon in my chest. Could it be...?

After expecting amber eyes to meet my own it was a crushing disappointment when they met nothing but the green of the tree and the permanent cloudy grey of the sky.

I scowled and wandered over towards the window to pick up a t-shirt from the floor.

What were you expecting Bella? A visit from Edward?

The name caused a white hot shaft of pain to pierce through me and I cried out softly, clutching at my stomach.

When I felt I could stand again there was a figure framed in the window. A little scream of surprise escaped me and my heart skipped a beat before drumming again in earnest.

The t-shirt slipped through my fingers as I stood there and stared into cool amber eyes.

What the hell…

I threw open the window, which probably would have hit him if he didn't have superhuman reflexes and hissed.

"Get the hell away from my window Jasper."

I took in his appearance while he considered me. I was pretty sure he wasn't wearing his own clothes – jeans and a soft cotton long sleeved t-shirt– but I guessed that was because he hadn't been able to force himself to enter Alice's room.

His beauty dazzled me as always and I scowled to myself. He's not perfect Bella, no matter how much he _looks_ it.

It actually looked like he was in some sort of really weird advert, crouched as he was in a tree but still managing to look both graceful and somewhat like a male model, complete with soft breeze tangling in his honey curls. But it was his eyes that drew me in, much the same yet completely different to Ed… _his._ He obviously hadn't hunted since I'd last seen him because his eyes were darker in colour. They felt cool yet sad, as if he was encased in ice and unable to express his grief on his face.

I snapped my eyes away and blinked a few times. It really was unfair for them all to be so disarmingly beautiful. But I remembered the way his teeth had glistened razor sharp when he had lunged for me and the image was sufficient to dispel any lingering dreaminess I felt.

"I know you've got perfect hearing Jasper so please, go break some more trees and leave me _alone_."

Here would have been the point where I'd slammed the window and flounced off dramatically but unfortunately the wind chose that moment to give a particularly harsh gust and blow my hair across my eyes.

Of course in the few seconds it took me to free myself of the thick curls Jasper was out of the tree and into my room.

I slammed the window anyway, for effect, before I spun around and glared at him.

"I don't recall saying you could come in."

He regarded me coolly and I shuffled my feet nervously but then his next words hit me.

"You're hurting Bella."

I looked at him as if he'd grown an extra head, feeling myself grow more and more angry as the seconds passed.

"Well really, thank you Captain Obvious!"

I was surprised to see his perfect mouth turn up at one corner in an almost-smile but I forged on.

"I hadn't really noticed, being that my boyfriend and my best friend have abandoned me in the space of a day because of something I haven't even done yet, and they have more faith in a stupid vision than they have in us!"

I gestured between us both wildly, nearly poking myself in the eye in the process. The half-smile developed more.

"And don't you smirk at me Mr I'm-so-perfect-I-can-waltz-into-people's-rooms-uninvited because _this_," I gestured between us again, "is categorically _not_ happening. So you can just leave now!"

I pointed at the window but he didn't move an inch. It was almost a tangible thing when his emotional control snapped.

"Bella...." His voice was low and hoarse with grief.

My hand wavered a little and I felt tears building up in my eyes. I held onto the anger in an attempt to stop the pain.

"Get out Jasper..." My voice sounded unsure even to myself and I felt the last dregs of my anger swirl away.

My arm dropped to wrap around my stomach and I drew in a few ragged breaths. I felt a wave of calm hit me – Jasper was attempting to help – but it was like grabbing onto a life belt in a rough sea.

I felt a cool touch on the back of my neck and looked up to see Jasper's marble face twisted as he attempted to wrestle with his thirst and the emotional atmosphere.

"Too close..." I managed to gasp out through my constricted throat.

He just shook his head, increasing the potency of the calming waves now he was touching me.

"It's bearable."

Despite myself I was drawn in by his emotional manipulation and I turned my face into his chest, my own heaving with sobs.

As suddenly as he had appeared he was gone; his movements blurred to my human eyes, drawing deep breaths with his head outside the window. Attempting to rid his senses of the smell of me I guessed.

"I'm sorry…" I felt a blush of embarrassment dust my cheeks and sniffed wildly.

"I just…" I waved my hands about ineffectually hoping to convey my meaning somehow.

Jasper half turned to me, the right side of his beautiful face lit with what little light filtered through the cloud cover.

"I'm not Edward Bella I don't have limitless control." His voice was deep with emotion.

Through the stab of pain I recognised the look of self-loathing on Jasper's face.

"I didn't expect you to help me Jasper. I didn't _ask_ for your help."

I attempted to limit the loneliness in my voice but it was essentially a pointless exercise with an empath in the room. Jasper was beside me again in a second, his face on a level with my own.

"You're not alone in this Bella. I understand."

I shook my head and grasped my hair with both hands.

"Well I'm glad someone does because I _don't_. How could he leave me? To just give up on us like that, without a fight… _That _hurts more than anything."

"Edward is a mystery to all but himself; we would be wasting our time trying to understand him."

The odd way Jasper had of speaking was strangely soothing. It was as if one of the characters from my books had come alive from the pages to comfort me.

"And Alice…"

I looked up to see the reaction on his face but I was unprepared for the look of total devastation – like somehow his entire world had been snatched away in a moment.

"Alice is a law unto herself Bella, as always I trust in her to follow what she believes is right. That does not mean her lack of faith is not painful to me and neither does it diminish my love for her. It is simply what is and what must be."

Vampire wisdom was strange to me, felt old and precious in my hands like ancient parchment.

"Then we sit by and we accept this?" I shook my head. "Jasper there must be something…" An air of hopelessness filled me and I felt my hands pulled gently away from my hair by two icy ones.

"Don't lose hope Bella, never that. It is the most human of emotions."

I set my jaw and flipped my hands over in his, threading my fingers through his longer ones.

"Then I hope we never fall in love Jasper."

I looked at him for a long moment before tugging my hands away. He unfolded his and let me tuck mine against my stomach. It was an odd thing to have such cold hands touching me again. My own body heat was comforting.

"I think you should leave now."

"Perhaps that is best." He rose and I felt relief permeate me. "Bella, would it be… acceptable for me to return?"

I gripped my top in both hands before I could screw up the courage to look at him.

"I don't think that's a good idea."

I literally saw his face fall. His cool marble hand was on my face before I could blink, forcing me to stare into his. It was like looking into the sun – burning yet somehow still pleasurable through the pain.

"Bella. I need to hunt. We'll talk about this later."

He was gone before I could blink. Vampires. It was like trying to catch the wind in your hands. How could I ever have thought that Edward would stay with me?

I stood and wandered dreamily over to the window, standing there for a few moments after shutting it behind him.

Then I returned to my bed and cried hot tears of anger and shame because I was so very afraid. Alice's vision lay in front of my eyes like a physical barrier that I could imagine no way past or through.

If I survived through this, was that vision all that lay in front of me? Was there no hope for a life aside from a life without Edward?

If it wasn't for Charlie and Renee I would have taken it the moment Edward left – it was so much easier to die than to live.

All the ways that I could see out of this were void because of them. It was different when I was considering being changed, a car crash would probably have been arranged. I wouldn't be obviously dead by my own hand.

How could I take peace for myself and leave my family to live through the pain? It was selfish and it was unfair. And I wanted it more than anything.

I turned onto my back once my tears were spent and traced patterns in the ceiling with my eyes.

I was literally unable to imagine a world in which I loved anyone but Edward. And one where Jasper loved anyone but Alice. She was the one who had brought him to the Cullens and stayed with him all these years.

And she had left, just as Edward had, to chase some new shiny undefined future instead of a harsh present. Left behind the one she loved to grieve alone all for a future she had seen only a week ago.

Jasper had my deepest sympathy – he had been with Alice so long, been so much otherwise solitary that it was unthinkable to imagine him without her tiny figure alongside. Alice and Jasper were one in my mind – there was no one without the other.

Yet how could I take his pain as well as my own knowing full well what the consequences must be. When I was constantly being told that the future Alice had seen could not be denied.

I could, and I would, deny it. Jasper was much so much stronger than I was; what need did he have of me?

And if I could not live without his support, then I would not live. How hard could it be to crash? One hard jerk of the wheel could probably roll my truck…

I sighed and closed one eye, raising my hand to peer through my fingers at the white plaster of the ceiling.

From blissful happiness to considering suicide in one week straight. From feeling like life was golden, bubbling like champagne, to it tasting bitter and forbidden on my tongue.

I rolled over again to check my clock quickly. Time seemed to flow differently for me now, defined by the events within it rather than the space it occupied.

Charlie had not been gone even an hour but it felt like a year. Jasper would take time to return.

I was left alone with my pain and my fear, feeling adrift on my bed like a tiny boat in a vast ocean.


	5. Chapter 5

**(A/n my hope with this chapter was to establish the relationship between Jasper and Bella a bit more and for her to realise that she's not the only one hurting. R&R as always guys, hope you enjoy =] )**

* * *

**_Len Wein:  
_"A friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else." **

* * *

_Previously:_

_I rolled over again to check my clock quickly. Time seemed to flow differently for me now, defined by the events within it rather than the space it occupied._

_Charlie had not been gone even an hour but it felt like a year. Jasper would take time to return._

_I was left alone with my pain and my fear, feeling adrift on my bed like a tiny boat in a vast ocean._

* * *

Of course, I didn't manage to fall asleep and the minutes slipped by like treacle - each one a torture to me. I rolled over and groped blindly under the bed for the book I usually kept there.

Perhaps I could lose myself in a fantasy world until Jasper returned.

But I couldn't get into the story; the words swam in front of my eyes, taunting me with my inability. I slammed it shut and shoved it under the bed again, staying in my position of dangling over the edge to stare into the dusty darkness underneath.

My brain felt like it was running at a million miles an hour but yet it was still too slow. I felt at odds with myself and a little unsure of what to do next.

I yanked myself back onto the bed and walked over to my desk, grabbing my notepad and an old bitten pencil.

I didn't _draw_ so much as sketch lines, shapes, and shading – stapling my feelings to the paper. The emotions that I couldn't express in life were expressed here in smudged pencil. Page after page was covered, turned over, and then the pristine white covered again. It felt _good_, like I was creating order out of chaos although in truth it was much the other way around.

I was so absorbed that at first I didn't hear Jasper's quiet tap on the window. My head jerked up when I heard it the second time and I put my notepad aside. However the pencil stayed with me, gripped between my teeth.

I pulled the window open, cold wind swirling around my bare feet and curling my toes.

Jasper was inside before I could blink but I took a moment to stare out at the cloudy sky before shutting myself in with my own fears.

"You seem a little… improved Bella?" Jasper had a tentative smile on his face, no doubt tasting the little peace and calm I had found in his absence. I noticed the change in the colour of his eyes – they were now light butterscotch.

I removed the pencil from my mouth to talk, dangling it between my fingers.

"A little I guess …" I shrugged then narrowed my eyes at him.

"That doesn't mean I've accepted this, or that you're welcome here."

I moved to sit cross-legged on my bed. He stood in the middle of my room, rigid in posture, as if he was still a soldier on parade.

I smiled at him, hoping to soften the blow my words had dealt.

"It's not that _you're _not welcome Jasper, it's the consequences this could have for us." I looked away from his beautiful eyes and face before I could be drawn in and dazzled.

"Pitiful as it is, I need you right now and you're the only one who understands. But that is…"

He interrupted me quickly, his voice deep and whiskey-smooth.

"Bella I gladly offer what little comfort I can give. And ask that I may take it in return. Without the constant consideration of what Alice has seen to colour our actions…"

He ran a hand through his curls and a ragged sigh escaped his perfect lips.

I pointed the pencil at him and waggled it.

"It's not possible for us to just waltz about as if nothing has happened Jasper."

I echoed his sigh.

"Bella?"

I dropped my head into my hands and shook it, pressing my fingers into fireworks behind my eyes.

"I know what I believe in my heart is at odds to what everyone is telling me, but I can't just give up like that. I _love_ him. He's the only one I could ever be with."

I removed my hands from my face and looked up to see Jasper still standing stiffly in the middle of the room, an odd look on his face.

"Sit down Jasper for goodness sake." My voice came out snappy and I sighed again, passing a hand over my face to erase the tension I could feel lingering there.

"I'm sorry. This whole situation is just weird for me. It must be even worse for you."

My next glance saw him sitting in the rocking chair, one booted foot resting on his other knee. He was a different shape to _him_ – more long and lean. He reminded me of a jungle cat, all clean graceful lines. His amber eyes regarded me and I thought I caught a little tenderness in their depths before they iced over again.

"I know we haven't been that close Bella." An odd smile quirked his perfect lips. "Though I have to admit that was of my choosing."

I put my pencil in my mouth and looked at him, chewing thoughtfully.

"I'm not quite sure I know what you mean." It was all too easy to pick up his pattern of speech. It made me feel closer to him in an odd sort of way.

"I didn't trust myself with you Bella." He jerked his head back towards the window but even in that action his movements were smooth as if every joint had been oiled.

"I didn't ask to enter your room at first because I wasn't sure if I could control myself. I was planning on giving both of us more time. However," His eyes darkened noticeably and burned straight into mine, "once I felt your pain Bella, how could I stay away?"

I snorted, embarrassed at my weakness.

"A bit masochistic aren't you? Weren't you hurting enough already?" As soon as the words left my mouth I wanted to eat them back up again. We hadn't talked about his feelings at all– probably because he didn't want to discuss them with some human he hardly knew. I hurried to cover my mistake.

"Not that you _have _to talk about it or anything because I mean I haven't, but it's a bit of a stupid idea what with you being an empath and all because you can just _feel_ what I'm feeling so there's really no point and I'm gonna shut up now."

I finished my mumbled sentence with a particularly vicious chew of my pencil and I saw Jasper's eyes flick to my mouth. He covered it quickly with a confused tilt of his head.

"Do you _want_ to talk about it Bella?" His eyes had thawed out again and they were bright with some unknown emotion I couldn't read.

I didn't especially know where I stood with Jasper – before I guess I would have counted him as family. But with _him_ gone I didn't really have much claim to that anymore.

I lay back on the bed to avoid the piercing glare of his eyes and instead stared at the ceiling again, leaving his question unanswered. I blew out a breath through my lips, sounding like a horse. It made me smile a little to hear Jasper's quiet laugh from behind me and I felt affection rise in my throat. I knew he could feel it but thankfully, he made no comment.

We sat in comfortable silence for a minute (or lay on my part) before I sat up suddenly.

"Oh God I've got school tomorrow. I can _feel_ the roasting Jessica is going to give me already..."

I flopped back down with a groan.

"Just what I need, people reminding me that Ed…"

I trailed off but the rest of my unfinished sentence echoed around my head.

_Edward is gone, Edward is gone…_

The pain sliced through my chest again and I curled up, gasping for air. It seemed I couldn't have a few minutes with Jasper without bawling my eyes out at some point.

This time there was some anger mixed in with the pain. I wasn't sure if it was mine or his.

I seized on it, used it to wrestle myself back under control. When I opened my eyes again Jasper was crouched by the side of the bed with his hand hovering over my head. He certainly looked angry enough. Despite the fact it made him look horrifically vampiric I wasn't afraid because I knew the anger was on my behalf.

"If he wasn't my brother I'd kill him. Again." Jasper's statement was bald of emotion which somehow made it all the worse.

I think he attempted to send some calm my way but all I got was anger. He bared his teeth and growled, snapping to a standing position.

"What kind of man leaves his lover alone to cope with…" It was a rare thing to see Jasper struggle for words – it unsettled me.

"_That_. Whatever that may be. Bella I've not sensed that amount of pain in a long time. It's akin to the feelings of someone who's dying…"

His face lost all traces of anger as he bent to my level once again.

"You shouldn't have to deal with this Bella."

His eyes were soft with tenderness and concern instead of harsh with rage. I reached out a hand and touched it to his perfect marble cheek.

"It feels a little better already." I managed a wobbly smile for him.

He turned his head and placed a freezing kiss on my palm. I was unprepared for the rush of warmth it unleashed under my skin. I snapped my hand back to cradle it on my chest. He looked slightly amused.

"You were planning on dealing with this alone Bella… has that changed now?"

His cold fingers ghosted over my cheekbone, moving an errant curl to the side and lingering on my skin.

I struggled against the calm and intimate atmosphere that made me want to agree with whatever he said. I was sure I'd had some damn good reasons to disagree with him but they'd disappeared somewhere within the last minute or so.

I found my voice from somewhere dark within me.

"Don't underestimate me Jasper. I can cope just as well as you can."

His lips quirked in a bitter smile.

"Who says I'm coping at all? I think those trees can stand testament to that Bella."

"Well if I was strong enough I'd be ripping out trees too. I just don't see you crying all over the place."

"If it were not so desperately unoriginal I'd tell you I was crying on the inside."

He looked away then and I was sure if he could, he'd be blushing.

I teetered for a second because the question seemed risky but it rushed out before I could stop it.

"You really love her don't you?" I whispered - the situation seemed to call for it. His answer was quick and sure.

"I love her with all that I am Bella and everything I could be."

His eyes unfocused and he looked lost in his memory.

"We never had time to fall in love the conventional way. I was certainly looking for something to guide me, to tell me where to go and what to do. And in danced Alice with a whisper of a vision, a new peaceful life away from the atrocities I'd committed. Alice saved me in many ways. If vampires have souls then she holds mine in her hands…"

He looked at me again, his eyes bright with venom tears he could never shed. I was crying silently and he reached out to catch one of my tears on the tip of his icy finger. He shook it away violently and the quiet moment was lost. I sniffed and wiped my eyes quickly.

"Don't cry for me Bella. Of course she left me. I'm a monster, just a very dark shadow of the person I used to be. I can't count the number of people I've killed, the amount of times I've slipped up…" He turned away from me as he was speaking.

I interrupted him by taking his chin in my hand and turning his head straight towards me. I knew I wouldn't have been able to move him if he hadn't let me.

"But you're here now aren't you? I'm still breathing. Alice never blamed you Jasper so don't take it upon yourself to do it for her."

I tapped his nose with my finger and grinned at the surprised look on his face.

"Now let's both stop being so morbid, agreed?"

I held out my pinkie finger and rolled my eyes when he just looked at it, obviously confused. I grabbed his hand from where it rested on his thigh and hooked his finger with mine.

"Agreed." I attempted to look solemn but a little smile slipped out despite my best efforts.

"It really is good to have you here Jasper despite everything else that's going on."

I moved away from him then, feeling the moment had become too intense, and looked down at myself in surprise.

"Since when was I still in my pyjamas?"

Jasper was standing by this point looking a little amused.

"Well you're not exactly the brightest crayon in the box," I pointed at his outfit, "You do know it's about minus fifty-nine degrees outside don't you?"

He quirked an eyebrow at me and smirked.

"I think that's a slight exaggeration on your part if you'll excuse me saying so. And I don't feel the cold at all."

I stopped in the process of opening my wardrobe and cocked my hip.

"Unless you're hoping to watch it might be a good idea for you to leave now."

He was out of the door almost before I finished my sentence. I grinned and pulled out my comfy pair of black skinny leg jeans, throwing on an acid yellow t-shirt that was so bright it almost made your eyes hurt. There was little point bothering with shoes as I didn't plan on going outside and I much preferred walking barefoot when I was in the house.

"Done!"

I caught the exaggerated wince on Jasper's face as he returned through the door and smiled at me.

"That t-shirt is a tad… bright Bella."

I grinned at him, pulling it tight so he could see the smiley face scrawled on the front in glitter.

"Look, it's so you! The resemblance is uncanny!"

He mock frowned as he moved to stand next to me.

"I certainly do not look that insane. Or indeed that yellow."

I cracked up.

"Don't sulk; I'll buy you a matching one." I patted his shoulder comfortingly and threw myself back onto my bed, bouncing a few times before settling back on the pillows.

Jasper folded himself gracefully into a sitting position on the opposite end.

"What are your plans for today Bella?"

I frowned thoughtfully at him.

"I didn't really have any. Get the housework done and my homework finished. Forks isn't exactly the liveliest place on Earth in case you didn't notice."

"Your studies are important to you Bella?"

I shrugged, moving to dig beneath my bed for my school bag.

"I suppose so; I mean I want to go to a good college."

I felt my hand close around the strap and twisted back to throw my bag onto the bed with a heavy thump.

"I guess you didn't get much school work done when you were human – what with going into the army and all."

"True enough but I have learned much since. It is quite tiresome to sit through classes listening to the same thing you've heard numerous times before."

I grinned at him.

"Maybe I should just get you to do all my homework for me if you're so smart."

"I can certainly attempt to help."

I scowled at my Calculus book as I opened it.

"Then once more into the breach Major."


End file.
